My father sent me an article from the magazine of the Norwegian Israel Mission. Most Norwegians have learned to ignore whatever Christian pro-Israelis have to say about media and the Middle East, which is a shame, because being on a fringe doesn't automatically make you an extremist. It does to some, but to others it gives unique and important insights into the hypocrisies of the majority. Insights that are worth listening to even if you disagree with their overall worldview.

In this case it's a look at the dirty inner workings of the media's Middle East coverage. Endre Fyllingsnes writes:

On November 10, the Palestinian president, Yasser Arafat, died. In that occasion the Norwegian Israel Mission received a phone call from the NRK news about reactions among friends of Israel to the historic event. There were apparently rumours that some of them had gathered to celebrate the man's death with coffee and cake.

NRK found no cake eaters at the Norwegian Israel Mission. On the contrary, they were told that to celebrate a person's death is a despicable act. Furthermore that no matter how much one might dislike Arafat, it's a fact that many Palestinians saw him as their immortal leader. So in the name of all decency it's a duty to let the Palestinian people mourn in peace on the day of death, and instead settle Arafat's political legacy at a later time.

NRK thought this was an unusually sympathetic point of view for an Israel friend. Perhaps a little too sympathetic. At least it didn't qualify as an acceptable opinion when the reactions were broadcast. When the journalist learned that Arafat's death had triggered no wild celebration in the offices of the Norwegian Israel Mission, our further comments were without interest. One so wanted to speak to a cookie monster.

I don't know if NRK found one. And that's not the point. The episode illustrates a tendency we've seen at several occasions. When the large national media institutions contact us to gather views about events in the Middle East, the views we represent are not extreme enough to warrant coverage. Instead, the journalist often wants answer to the following questions: "Can you put us in contact with Israel friends who support murder of Palestinian children?" "Do you know of any Israel friends who believe that all Palestinians should be relocated from the West Bank and Gaza?" "Do you know anyone who really hates Palestinians?"

There are certainly Christian pro-Israelis who are hateful extremists, or whose God-given interpretation of the Bible inspires dumb statements about the conflict, but how can you know that these people are representative when they're the only ones the media allows you to hear about? When any view that is less than extremist is ignored as uninteresting? My own views about this conflict are relatively pro-Israeli, but that's not the point. Everyone loses when a debate is artificially polarized by corrupt journalists.

This is not limited to coverage of the Middle East. Quote shopping seems to be standard practice on all issues. Sometimes journalists go shopping for views that echo their own, other times for wackoes to embarass. In either case, the story is invented, and the interview subject is not a source of information but a piece on a board. This is not journalism. It's done by journalists, in the name of journalism, but it's not. Somebody needs to point this out.

And the Middle East conflict is a good issue to use as an example. Not because it's unique, but because there the corruption has gone further than anywhere else, motivated by a near-unanimous agreement about who's good and who's bad. This also makes the Middle East a good test of integrity. Anyone will complain when people they agree with are treated unfairly. Fewer object when it happens to people they disagree with, especially when the cycle of unfair coverage turns disagreement into dislike, and then dislike into revulsion.

The anti-Israeli bias is one of the most sickening aspects of European media today.

What is so sickening about that?
Is it more sickening than supporting the ethnic cleansing, state-sponsored terrorism and clear racial bias of Nazisrael?

Absolutely off the topic, but absolutely hysterical.

Go to http://www.littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/. Scroll down to “Don’t mess with Texas Women” and click on the link and listen to the phone message. I just about fell down laughing. I used to know some older Texas women

I am going to break one of Bjørn's rules on this blog.

[** Comment deleted. Announcing that you're going to break a rule doesn't make it acceptable. I shouldn't have to go into why calling other commenters "despicable cowards, and ignorant as well" is unacceptable. The rules are clear, and they won't be changed. So don't break them. - BS]

Trolls are nice creatures, but Kjell is of course right... Hatred of Israel or of parlamentarians who are critical to whatever religion will bring us nowhere. If you nurture beliefs like the two mentioned people claim to nurture, I truly HOPE that they will end up on the garbage pile of history.

So will, I am quite sure, our current system of government and society, flawed as it is.

For a technology and philosophy optimist like myself it seems obvious that something even better will come along. Just what? I guess we do not really know yet.

Øyvind

Can't but agree with you, Øyvind.

I've moved a few off-topic comments to the Islam thread, and replied to them there.

I listened to it this AM, Herbie, I had tears in my eyes.

Bjorn, Sorry to go totally off topic but I received a letter smuggled out of the Central Prison in Sana'a Yemen from a pro-democracy, Yemeni editor imprisoned and regularly beaten.

http://armiesofliberation.com/archives/2005/03/02/letter-from-a-sanaa-jail/

Please take a look and consider linking the petition for the poor guy's sake not mine. Actually if the topic is the media, its kind of on topic. Please take a look for the sake of this guys family, the progress of democracy in the ME, and the other Yemeni journalists who are suffering as well.

Thanks,
Jane

Sandi You gotta love Texas women :-)

Since no one seems to be posting today: :-)

Words Women Use

"Fine"
This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right and you need to shut up.

"Nothing"
This is the calm before the storm. This means "something" and you should be on your toes. Arguments that begin with "nothing" usually end in "fine".

"Go Ahead"
This is a dare, not permission, DON'T DO IT!

"Loud Sigh"
Although not actually a word, the loud sigh is often misunderstood by men. A "Loud Sigh" means she thinks you are an idiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you over "Nothing".

"That's Okay"
This is one of the most dangerous statements that woman can make to a man. "That's Okay" means that she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.

--Sandi You gotta love Texas women :-) --

Big hair and big boobs.

Sandy Hay don't forget the BBQ :-)

Such tactics is not limited to topics where the journalists have an obvious bias, like the Arab-Israeli conflict. Journalistic stories are written and directed to entertain more than to inform. Whenever there is a story, they get the two extreme sides to have a "debate" to entertain people eating popcorn in front of the TV. Nobody gets wiser.

A friend sent me this today regarding newspapers in the US. There is a ctually a great variety of editorial contrast in the US and if you are familiar with US cultural patterns you may this has more than a word of truth about US news papers and that it is also very clever:

1. The Wall Street Journal is read by the people who run the country.

2. The Washington Post is read by people who think they run the country.

3. The New York Times is read by people who think they should run the country, and who are very good at crosswords.

4. USA Today is read by people who think they ought to run the country but don't really understand the Washington Post. They do, however, like their statistics shown in pie charts.

5. The Los Angeles Times is read by people who wouldn't mind running the country, if they could spare the time, and if they didn't have to leave LA to do it.

6. The Boston Globe is read by people whose parents used to run the country and they did a far superior job of it, thank you very much.
7. The New York Daily News is read by people who aren't too sure who's running the country, and don't really care as long as they can get a seat on the train.

8. The New York Post is read by people who don't care who's running the country, as long as they do something really scandalous, preferably while intoxicated.

9. The San Francisco Chronicle is read by people who aren't sure there is a country or that anyone is running it; but whoever it is, they oppose all that they stand for. There are occasional exceptions if the leaders are handicapped minority feminist atheist dwarfs, who also happen to be illegal aliens from ANY country or galaxy as long as they are Democrats.

10. The Miami Herald is read by people who are running another country but need the baseball scores.

11. The National Enquirer is read by people trapped in line at the grocery store

Yeah, but the Enquirer broke The Reverand Jesse Jackson's love child.

They've been trying to become a little more serious.

Your post really don't need any comment Bjørn, it makes its obvious case without any elaboration. I am not pro Israel or Palestine, but I'm definitely negative to NRK. This example could also be an "understatement" of claims made by other participants on this site.

Typical Anti-Semitic bias and propaganda you can find also in Pravda English main forum:

http://engforum.pravda.ru/forumdisplay.php3?forumid=2

Typical posts:

http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=119553
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=119467
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=119550
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=119382
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=120370
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=120271
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=120336
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=120328
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=119920
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=120222
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=120248
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=120236
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=119471
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=118950&perpage=15&pagenumber=3
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=120077
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=120083
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=114865
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=115801
http://engforum.pravda.ru/showthread.php3?threadid=120009

Ronaldo

Øyvind, though I does not agree too much with you, I at least find your comments interesting and thoughtful. Have you considered taking up blogging?

kjell:

I am. Sort of. My website (www.dilettant.no) is more web magazine, than blog, but I try having different interesting articles on. And there is a blog in connection with it, where I am one of several contributors.

I have also considered creating an English-language blog, but then I need some more time than I have today.

Øyvind

P.S: Thanks for finding me thoughtful, at least :)

"...they were told that to celebrate a person's death is a despicable act."

Ding-dong, the witch is dead!
Which old witch?
This old witch!
Ding-dong the wicked witch is dead!

She's gone where the goblins go:
Below, below, below...

Ding-dong, the merry-O!
Sing it high, sing it low!
Ding-Dong the wicked witch is dead!...

Aren't Munchkins despicable?

Almost all progress in society, science, and technology has come from the fringe. Ignore it and stay ignorant.

Congrats, Øyvind, with your new "Moonshine" blog.
Make it 96%(internal norwegian humor).

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